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Gideon
Gideon was 's fourth major Judge after the birth of , who eventually led a small army of Israelites against the Midianites. Biography Early life Gideon was the son of Joash, who lived in Ophrah.↑ Gideon was living during the time of the seven year oppression of Midianites.↑ The oppression being so severe, it forced many Israelites into mountains, caves and other fortifications,Judg 6:2 and left the Israelites with no food or cattle (stolen by the Midianites). Judg 6:3-5 The Israelites soon called out to , Judg 6:6-7 who sent a prophet to remind them that they had been disobedient to Him. Judg 6:8-10 Sent to Save Israel Assignment from God After the arrival of the prophet, the Angel of God came down where Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress in order to hide it from the Midianites.Judg 6:11 The Angel appeared to Gideon and told Gideon that God was with him, calling him a "mighty warrior". Judg 6:12 Gideon hearing this asked the Angel why God had allowed Israel to be oppressed by the Midianites and not performed any miraculous acts to save them. Judg 6:13 The Angel then turned to Gideon and told him to go with all his strength and save Israel from Midian. Judg 6:14 Gideon then responded to the Angel with the question of how he could save Israel, especially since he was the weakest member of the weakest family of the entire tribe of Manasseh. Judg 6:15 After this God told him that He would be with him and that he would kill the Midianites, not leaving one survivor. Judg 6:16 Testing for a sign to confirm Gideon seeing that he had found favor in God's eyes, asked God to give him a sign to prove that it was indeed God. Judg 6:17 Gideon asked God to wait for him while he went to go get an offering. Judg 6:18 Gideon went inside his home, and prepared a sacrifice: a young goat, with flower with its meat in a basket and its broth in a bowl, and it brought it outside to sacrifice. Judg 6:19 God then asked Gideon to take the meat and brand and place them on a rock under the oak tree, and to pour the broth on it. Judg 6:20 So God touched the contents of the sacrifice and the rock caught fire and burned the sacrifices and then He disappeared. Judg 6:21 After this Gideon realized it was God, and shouted that he had seen the Angel of God Judg 6:22 in fear that he could die, which he was reassured by God to have peace and know he would not die. Judg 6:23 Building and removing altars Gideon then decided to build an altar to God under the oak in Ophrah, and named it after God being peace. Judg 6:24 Later that night God called to Gideon to take the seven year old bull from his father's herd, and to tear down his father's altar to Baal. Judg 6:25 Then Gideon would need to use the materials from the destroyed altar to Baal to build one to God, for him to sacrifice his father's bull on. Judg 6:26 Gideon did as he was commanded and took ten of his servants with him to accomplish the task, only destroying the altar to Baal at night for he was fearful of the townsmen and his family. Judg 6:27 The next morning the townspeople got up and saw the altar destroyed, and in it's place a new altar with a sacrificed bull. Judg 6:28 This angered the Abiezrites and after investigating discovered it was Gideon, Joash's son. Judg 6:29 The civilians of Oprah went to Gideon's father, demanding that he be brought out so he may be killed for destroying Baal's altar. Judg 6:30 Joash in defense of his son told the people that if Baal was really a god he could defend his own altar. Judg 6:31 After this Gideon was known by the town as "Jerub-Baal", which meant that Baal should contend with him. Judg 6:32 At war with Midian Proving that God would allow him to save Israel Eventually all the Midianites, joining forces with Amalekites and other groups crossed over the Jordan River and camped in Jezreel valley to prepare a siege on Israel. Judg 6:33 So the Holy Spirit came upon Gideon, Judg 6:34 and Gideon began to gather Israelites from the tribes of Manasseh, Asher, Zebulun and Naphtali to join him in assembling a defense force. Judg 6:35 Before he went into war, Gideon wanted reassurance that God would keep his promise, Judg 6:36 so he asked to perform a sign, by making a wool fleece that he would leave on the floor, wet with dew but the surrounding ground dry. Judg 6:37 God, never breaking a promise, performed the sign for Gideon and when the son of Joash woke up early the next day he squeezed out of a bowlful of dew. Judg 6:38 Gideon was still unsure so he pleaded with God to not be angry with him asking again; Gideon asked for the vice versa of the previous sign, Judg 6:39 and so only the fleece was dry, not the ground. Judg 6:40 Off to war So early the next morning, "Jerub-Baal" and his men camped at the spring of Harod, south of the Midian camp in the Moreh Valley. Judg 7:1 Previously, Gideon raised an army of 32,000, but God told Gideon the army was too large, because they would boast defeat over the Midians, from there own strength. Judg 7:2 After having Gideon perform three tests on his army, Judg 7:3-5 God had whittled down the amount of soldiers to 300 men and informed Gideon that those would be the men who would fight Midian. Judg 7:6-7 So Gideon sent the remainder of the soldiers outside the 300 home, and the remaining soldiers acquired the trumpets of the other men. Judg 7:8 The following excerpt is copied from the of Allaboutbibleprophecy.com. This section is in need of a rewrite in order to be original content At night, Gideon and his 300 men lit torches, blew trumpets and shouted "For the Lord and for Gideon." Then they stood by and watched as the enemy panicked, and the Lord caused the enemy troops to begin fighting and killing each other. Midian never recovered, and the land was at peace for 40 years during Gideon's lifetime. He returned home, had 70 sons by many wives. Gideon died an old man, and was buried by his father in Ophrah. His victory over the Midianites was remembered for many generations as the "Day of Midian". Isaiah 9:4 The name Gideon means "he who casts down." Verses